Nagga Hamza and Ben Abdallah Mohamed Arbi fought hard for Tunisia, as they pushed No.7 world ranked Cuba all the way in the first set (24-26) – and the Africans won set two (25-23) with some powerful spiking and well co-ordinated blocking.

But Cuba, for whom captain Abreu Rolando Cepeda (20 points) and Mestre Osmany Santiago (17) performed magnificently, proved too strong in sets three and four to seal a relatively easy win, as mistakes crept in for Tunisia.